KALAMAZOO — Some 4,000 Western Michigan University students are set to move into dorms Monday and Tuesday.

They will arrive on a campus that has gotten a slight facelift over the summer months through millions of dollars in remodeling projects done in anticipation of the new school year beginning on Sept. 7.

Most noticeable exterior work is the $69 million overhaul of Sangren Hall that left a more open expanse in the middle of campus when part of the classroom building was razed in July. And there’s foundation work on a $12.5 million apartment complex on the west side of campus.

These two sizable construction jobs will be going on for the next one to two years.

But there are numerous other changes on campus in anticipation of students this fall — a $2 million renovation of the front section of the Bernhard Center, a $2.6 million remodeled dining hall in one of the dorms and dozens of repainted classrooms.

Mark Bugnaski | Kalamazoo GazetteWMU President John M. Dunn, center, admires the new design at the revamped front section of the Bernhard Center. Dunn and a few other administrators toured several renovation projects on the universityâs campus Friday.

Also, two major campus roads were resurfaced through partial funding from the WMU Foundation, and the city of Kalamazoo put in two new roundabouts west of campus on Howard Street.

“We have more projects going this year than we’ve had in prior years,” said Lowell Rinker, vice president of business and finance.

“We had a lot of tired spaces on campus that needed refreshing,” he said.

Among ‘busiest summers’Including the Bernhard Center renovation, dining hall remodel, work at Robert J. Bobb stadium, a new indoor track at Read Fieldhouse and numerous other projects, the campus has seen between $10 to 11 million in upgrades, said Pete Strazdas, associate vice president for facilities.

“You’re going to see jaws hit the floor when they walk into Davis Dining and the front of the Bernhard Center,” Strazdas said.

The Bernhard, Western’s student center, has a renovated lobby and lounge area, new carpeting and remodeled meeting spaces and other upgrades.

The dining hall at Davis, a residence for upperclassmen, was completely remodeled. The cafeteria looks more like a modern restaurant, complete with a gas fireplace and several themed food stations, than an institutional eating place.

On Friday, WMU President John M. Dunn and other administrators toured several of the areas still under construction or getting final touches.

Except for Sangren and the apartment complex, officials expect all work to be complete before the first wave of students move in on Monday.

With the “handful of pretty good mid-size $1-to- $2-million projects and literally dozens and dozens of smaller projects all bundled together in one summer, it has probably been one of our busiest summers in memory,” especially with the apartment complex and Sangren, Strazdas said.

Good time to buildThough Sangren and apartment projects will be ongoing, he said they should not impede traffic flow through campus.

“We’re not blocking any roads. We’re not blocking sidewalks. They are two neat little islands that have little to no impact to students,” he said.

The apartment complex being erected on what was a parking area — just west of Miller Auditorium between Knollwood Avenue and Kohrman Hall — is slated to be done next fall.

For the Sangren Hall project, the southern half of the building was demolished in July. The north end is still standing and in use.

Over the next two years, the plan is to construct an entirely new Sangren where the southern portion of the building once stood.

After that new structure is up for classes in 2012, the northern half of the building will be demolished.

Strazdas said he expects some criticism — and praise — for the extensive amount of campus renovation during these tight economic period.

“My comeback on that is, this is the time to spend money. It really is because the cost of labor and the cost of material and the profit margins of companies have come down. They are hungry,” he said.